Closure latch



v Q 1970 H. J. BROCKMAN I 3,537,740

CLOSURE LATCH Filed March 14, 1968 32 INVEN'I'OR.

BY %nryJ6roe/tmazz ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,537,740 CLOSURE LATCH Henry J. Brockman, Warren, Mich., assignor to General Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 14, 1968, Ser. No. 713,155

r Int. (:1. Ec 3/26. Us. or. 292- 198 I I 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to closure latches and more particularly to vehicle body door locks.

The major feature of this invention is that it provides a vehicle body door lock having a rotatable bolt and interconnecting means between the bolt and the latch support when 'the bolt is in latched position which is capable of receiving part of a force open load applied to the bolt pivot.

This feature is attained according to a preferred embodiment of the invention by providing a latch support frame which includes a pair of latch support plates rigidly interconnected by a pivot pin and a strut. The bolt is rotatably mounted on the pivot pin for movement to latched and unlatched positions and includes a slot which receives the strut in the latched position of the bolt. A force open load applied to the door when the bolt is in latched position in engagement with the striker applies a resultant load to the pivot pin tending to tear it from the plates. However, the resultant load applied to the pivot pin is transferred to the strut by the bolt so that only part of the resultant load is accepted by the pivot pin.

This and other features of the closure latch of this invention will be readily apparent from the following specification and drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a partial side elevational view of a vehicle body embodying a closure latch according to this invention;

IFIG. 2 is an enlarged partially broken away view of the latch with the bolt in latched position;

FIG. 3 is a partial view of a portion of FIG. 2 showing the bolt in unlatched position; and

FIG. 4 is a view taken generally along the plane indicated by line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawings, a vehicle body designated includes a front door 12 hinged at its forward edge .14 to the body 10' for movement between a closed position, as shown, and an open position, not shown, alfording entrance to the body. Door 12 is held in closed position by a closure latch 16 according to this invention which is mounted on the swinging rear wall of the door and engages a striker pin on the adjacent body look pillar wall.

The latch 16 is similar to that shown and described in Fox et al. 3,190,682, issued June 22, 1965 and assigned to the assignee of this invention. Accordingly, only a brief description of the latch necessary to an understanding of this invention will be given. As shown in FIGS. 2 through 4, the latch support frame includes a main plate 18 which abuts the inner surface of the rear wall 20' of door 12 and is secured thereto by a number of bolts 22 extending through the wall 20 into extruded tapped openings in the plate. An auxiliary plate 24 is rigidly located 3,537,740 Patented Nov. 3, 1970 "ice in generally parallel spaced relationship to the plate 18 by lateral tabs 26 and 28 of the plate 18 which are staked to the plate 24. A lower lateral flange 30 of the plate 24 cooperates with the plate in providing a housing for the shoe, as will be described, and terminates in a flange 32 I which is also staked to a lateral tab 34 of the plate 18.

A fork type bolt 36 is rotatably mounted on a pivot pin 38 which extends between and is staked to the plates 18 and 24. A coil torsion spring 40 surrounds the pin 38 and has one end thereof hooked within an opening in the bolt and the other end thereof engaging a notched lateral flange 42 of the plate 18. The spring continually biases the bolt to unlatched position, shown in FIG. 3, wherein the bolt is located by engagement thereof with a lateral flange of plate 18. A headed striker pin 44 is mounted on the lock pillar wall, not shown, of the body M, and the shank of the pin is received within the bolt throat in the latched position of the bolt to hold the door in closed position. A nylon or other plastic shoe 46 is slidably mounted on a pin 48 of the plate 24 and is spring biased outwardly of the plates for engagement by the head of the striker pin to wedge the shank of the pin against the base of the bolt throat in the latched position of the olt.

The bolt is held in latched position against the action of the spring 40 by a detent 50 which is rotatably mounted on a pin 52 of the plate 18 and includes a foot 54 engageable with either a shoulder 56 or a shoulder 58 of the bolt to hold the bolt respectively in either fully latched position, as shown in FIG. 2, or intermediate latched position, not shown. A coil torsion spring 60 surrounds the pin 52 and has one end thereof hooked to an arm 62 of the detent and the other end thereof engaging a notched lateral tab of the frame 18 to continually bias the detent clockwise toward the bolt. The detent is located against the action of the spring 60 by engagement of a foot 64 of the detent with a rubber bumper covered tab 66 of the frame 18. A bell crank inside remote lever 68 is pivoted at 70 to a lateral flange 72 of the plate 24 and has one leg overlying the arm 62 of the detent. The other leg of the lever 68 is connected by a rod 74 with the inside remote handle 76, FIG. 1. Rearward swinging movement of the handle shifts the rod 74 forwardly of the body and causes the one leg of the lever 68 to swing the detent 50 clockwise as viewed in FIG. 2 and thereby release the bolt for movement to unlatched position.

The outside release means include a conventional O.D. handle 78, FIG. 1, mounting conventional push button means 80. The push rod 82 of the push button means is engageable with the outside operating lever 84 which is pivoted on a pin 86 of an extension 88 of the plate 18. The intermittent link 90 has its bent upper end hooked within an opening in the lever 84 to pivotally interconnect the intermittent link and the outside operating lever. A coil torsion spring 92 surrounds the pin 86 and has one leg thereof anchored to a tab 94 of the extension 8 8 and the other leg thereof engaging a notched tab 96 of the intermittent link to bias the link and lever 84 downwardly and counter-clockwise of pin 86 and thereby hold one end of a slot lever 84 in engagement with the tab 94. The pivotal position of the intermittent link relative to the lever 84 is controlled by a lockinglever 98 which is pivoted at 100 to the plates 18 and 24. A tab 102 of the lever 98 is received in a slot 104 of the intermittent link to couple the intermittent link and the locking lever. When the locking lever is in unlocked position shown in FIG. 2, a lateral tab 106 of the intermittent link underlies a shoulder 108 of the detent 50 so that upward movement of the intermittent link upon clockwise swinging movement of the outside operating lever 84 will swing the detent clockwise and release the bolt. When the locking lever is in locked position, not shown, it is located to the left of its position shown so that tab 106 does notunderlie shoulder 108 and the detent remains in engagement with the bolt upon upward movement of the intermittent link. A coil torsion overcenter type spring 110 hooked between the lever 98 and plate 24 locates the locking lever in either its unlocked position shown or its locked position, not shown, slightly clockwise of the position shown. A rod 112 connects the lever 98 to the garnish button 114, FIG. 1, and the locking lever is also conventionally connected to the outside key cylinder 116.

When the door is in closed position and a force open load is applied to the inner panel of the door, a resultant load is applied to the bolt pivot pin 38 which tends to tear this pin from the plates 18 and 24. In order to transfer part of this resultant load from the pin 38, the bolt includes an arcuate slot 118 which is generated about the axis of the pin 38 and surrounds or receives a strut 120 'when the bolt is in fully latched position or intermediate latched position. The engagement of the edge 122 of the slot with the strut 120 is effective to transfer part of he force open load to the strut.

The strut is shown as a lateral tab of plate 18 which is staked to plate 24, but it can also be a pin staked to both plates 18 and 24. The strut is also shown as being arcuate about the axis of pin 38, and notched at 124, to receive a portion of the bolt in unlatched position.

Thus this invention provides a closure latch having increased resistance to a force open load.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination with a closure member mounted on a vehicle body for movement between open and closed positions with respect to a body member, a pair of spaced latch supports mounted on one member, a latch bolt pivot pin extending between and secured to the supports, a latch bolt mounted on the pivot pin for movement between latched and unlatched positions, a striker mounted on the other member for engagement by the bolt in latched position to hold the closure member in closed position, a strut extending between and secured to the supports in spaced relationship to the pivot pin and having a surface thereof located transverse of the path of movement of the latch bolt, and an edge portion on the bolt located in immediately adjacent juxtaposed relationship to the strut in the latched position of the bolt and engageable with the strut upon application of a force open load to the closure member to transfer part of the load from the pivot pin to the strut.

2. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein the strut surface is generated about the pivot pin axis and the edge portion on the bolt is generated about the pivot pin axis and engageable with the surface of the strut.

3. In combination with a closure member mounted on a vehicle body for movement between open and closed positions with respect to a body member, a pair of spaced latch supports mounted on the closure member, a latch bolt pivot pin extending between and secured to the supports, a latch bolt mounted on the pivot pin for movement between latched and unlatched positions and including an arcuate slot open at one end and generated about the pivot pin axis, a striker mounted on the body member for engagement by the bolt in latched position to hold the closure member in closed position, and a strut extending between and secured to the latch supports, the strut being received within the bolt slot in the latched position of the bolt, an edge of the slot being engageable with the strut upon application of a force open load to the closure member to transfer part of the load from the pivot pin to the strut.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 162,011 4/1875 Barr 292-116 2,643,150 6/1953 Giles 292-25669 3,190,682 6/1965 Fox et a1. 292-216 3,197,246 7/1965 Russell et a1. 292101 RICHARD E. MOORE, Primary Examiner 

